Grid near capacity; conservation urged

Published 10:40 pm, Friday, July 19, 2013

The Transmission Control Room's curved walls feature a map of the company's transmission lines at the new United Illuminating Operation Building at 100 Marsh Hill Road in Orange, Conn. on Tuesday, June 4, 2013.

The Transmission Control Room's curved walls feature a map of the company's transmission lines at the new United Illuminating Operation Building at 100 Marsh Hill Road in Orange, Conn. on Tuesday, June 4, 2013.

If you thought Thursday night was about the worst night ever, you were right.

It tied the mark for the hottest night on record -- 80 degrees in lower Fairfield County, according to Angela Fritz, a meteorologist with WeatherUnderground.com. That low occurred about 8 a.m. Friday, so for most of the night, it was well into the 80s.

"It tied the all-time warm low," she said. "And that's the thing that we worry about. If it doesn't cool off at night, there's no recovery and it just stresses the body."

She said despite all the attention given to hurricanes, tornadoes and such, it's heat that lays down the welcome mat for the Grim Reaper.

"Heat is the No. 1 weather-related killer," she said. Temperatures during the day Friday shot to 95 degrees in Stamford.

At the root of the problem, experts say, is a sluggish jet stream that can't seem to get out of its own way.

"We're seeing these blocking patterns happen more often now," she said, noting that the normally undulating jet stream in recent years has been unwilling to, well, undulate.

"The melting Arctic sea ice -- not having the ice cover -- seems to be parking the jet stream, creating these blocking situations. Now we're seeing these things stay stagnant for long periods."

A similar blocking situation was seen when Hurricane Sandy raked New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, a storm that should have veered out to sea, she said.

"This is exactly what the research said would happen with a smaller polar ice cap," said Fritz.

The National Weather Service posted an extreme heat warning on Friday in scores of counties from Delaware to Maine, including all of southwestern Connecticut.

This puts pressure on ISO New England, which manages the electrical load from Connecticut to Maine. The independent system operator can, if need be, buy power from as far away as Quebec and New Brunswick if things get worse.

Formerly know at the New England Power Pool, ISO New England reported on Friday that it implemented procedures to "keep the system in balance."

ISO spokeswoman Marcia Blomberg said it implemented "Demand Response Resources," in which some companies agree to partially shut down, giving the grid an additional reserve to work with.

Grid managers also issued a plea to consumers Friday to turn off lights, shut off unneeded appliances and refrain from washing clothes until evening hours.

Friday's demand hit an estimated peak of 27,850 megawatts, which would go down in history as the second-greatest day for electricity use in New England.

ISO's record high power use of 28,130 megawatts occurred Aug. 2, 2006.

The good news is that Saturday will bring an end to the suffocating blanket we've been under.